The Bobcats would have more fans if. . .

[The Stache]

I think all we need to get fans is one superstar player, like someone that is in the top 10 of all NBA players. Look at some examples:

76ers- Fans lost interest once A.I. left.
Celtics- With KG, now one of the most popular teams.
Cavaliers- I barely heard of them before LeBron James came.
Lakers- Would they have any fans without Kobe?
Denver- Melo (and A.I.) definitely got fans interested in Denver.

The Bobcats definitely have a lot of talent in J-Rich and Wallace, but having a superstar would get us 4 things: more fans, more wins, more team merchandise sales, and more ticket sales.

[Michael Thompson]

Wow.

First of all, thank you for letting me post here - and thank you to everyone who replied. Your passion for the Bobcats is obvious, and I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.

I took the liberty of grouping your suggestions and comments, and will do my best to address them by those groups. Some answers I have for you today. Some I'll have for you in the coming weeks. Some I have absolutely no idea if I'll ever be able to answer adequately. But I hope this serves as a jumping off point for more discussion on Bobcats-related topics.

The issue mentioned most so far is our television broadcast deal. While Time Warner Cable, and News 14 in particular, is a terrific partner for us, everyone realizes that the current agreement has some practical application limitations, and all sides are committed to finding solutions. How long , and in what form, those solutions will take is purely a matter of speculation at the moment, but understand that all sides are working hard at it because so much of our ability to grow the brand depends on fans throughout the region being able to regularly watch us play on television. And because Mark Packer said it's important (I'm kidding PacMan - it's good to be back in the market and listen to your show again).

Issue two (sounds like we're doing the McLaughlin Group now) is what we call internally "experiential marketing" - all the ways in which our fans experience the Bobcats in-person. I hear you loud and clear on the volume at the Arena (no pun intended). That's a really tough call for game presentation directors across the league. On the one hand, you don't want to bust people's ear drums - on the other hand, it is a live sporting event where you want to create a certain kind of atmosphere and homecourt advantage, and quiet arenas don't do much for that. Is there a happy medium? I believe so. Give us a chance to find it. As far as accessability to players, I believe you have a right to expect that as well. I've only been here a month now and am not completely familiar with our public appearance policy and schedule, but as soon as I learn more I will share it. And, yeah Spectre, we've got a hot dance team - you could have met a couple of them at Picasso's in University for our first watch party of the season. That schedule I do have, and I'll be happy to post it here.


After these two major issues, there were ten more with one or two comments each. Let me try to tackle what I know for sure, and then let you know which ones I can get answers for and which ones I have no answers for.

What I Know For Sure:
Our new website is coming. Soon. I saw a preview of it yesterday and it looks awesome. This is something you're going to be proud of, and something you'll be visiting a lot. In addition to the new look, it's going to take on a new philosophy. Bobcats.com won't necessarily be the place where Bobcats news breaks (we will do that occasionally, just not as a regular practice), but it will be the place that covers our news the best (video, blogs, transcripts, game stories, ticket window, community angles, partner pages, links, etc). Bobcats.com is unique among all media covering the team because of the access we provide it. Matt and his staff have been working their tails off over the past couple of months to create the new site and do it the right way. I know there have been delays and frustrations along with it, but it will be worth the wait.

Arena naming rights is another thing that a lot of people have been waiting patiently for, and another thing the organization is working around-the-clock to get done. Finding solutions for this and the television deal are priorities 1 and 1A for us because they both impact our brand, our business and our bottom line in so many ways. Finding those solutions will be huge for the organization, and the city as well, and I know there are a lot of very smart and committed people working dilligently on this because I've been in the room as they work on it.

On the basketball operations front, fans will have direct access to GM Rod Higgins tomorrow (Saturday) night during our chalk talk in Lowe's Home Court at 6pm. Mr. Higgins will speak about the direction of the team and answer your questions, so show up. Access doesn't come any more direct than that. Mr. Bickerstaff's role remains the same as Executive VP. I've seen him at games and in the office, and he deserves so much credit for the early development of many of our players.

From a community relations standpoint - thank you to all who have offered their assistance and contributions to our charitable foundation. The programs that our Senior VP of Community Relations LaRita Barber has put together are some of the best in the league, and the Community Care Cruiser is a great cause to get behind with a donation or attendance at our annual black tie fundraiser (which is widely heralded as the best of its kind in Charlotte - and that's saying a lot). The new website will be loaded with info on programs like these, and ways to get personally involved.

I know we don't give tickets away wholesale, but our sales staff certainly has a very limited number of comps at their disposal for prospecting purposes - getting serious potential ticket buyers to experience the game firsthand in an attempt to bring them on-board as future ticket buyers. This is an effective tool for our sales staff, and a practice used around the league.


What I Don't Know For Sure, But Can Ask About:
I don't know anything about an Arena boycott (perceived or otherwise), but will do my best to find out if that ever happened and what the final outcome was if it did. I've never seen or heard of protestors, but I will look into it.

Mr. Jordan's presence is certainly felt around the organization, but I think there's room for improvement on the organization's side (read: my department) to let people know just how much he is involved. MJ is the most unique owner in sports. No other owner is able to directly impact the way his team performs on the court like he's demonstrated he can. And while I recognize that doesn't quite feel the same to fans who want to see him sitting courtside, I love the idea of him delivering a pregame welcome. Let me pass that one along.

Playing regular season home games outside of our market is a little trickier than it sounds (this coming from someone who did it for two years post-Katrina, in which the Hornets played "home" games in four different arenas). Logistics, tickets, game operations, travel arrangements, broadcasts, sponsorships and the league schedule makers are just a few of the obstacles a team would need to deal with and overcome to pull off just one game outside of its home arena. But like I said, the Hornets did it for two years and the NHL just played a game outdoors so anything is possible.


What I Have No Answers For:
The issue I'll refer to as "Hornets Hangover" or "Anti-NBA" is the one that throws me for a loop. This is a new day, with a new franchise that is committed to Charlotte. There are no threats to leave, no animosity with ownership or management, no off-court troubles with our players, no irreparable damage in the market. And to hold a franchise that didn't exist 6 years ago accountable for the sins of another seems as irrational to me as painting every NBA player with the same brush and writing them all off as "thugs". For this issue I have no answer - other than the facts. Basketball is overtaking soccer as the world's most popular sport. The best basketball in the world is played in the NBA (hey, I was a college basketball purist myself once, and then I started watching the NBA in-person on a regular basis and it pained me to finally admit that there is no comparison to the athletic abilities and skill levels of NBA players). Charlotte is one of only 28 markets in the world to have an NBA team to call its own. And having lived in a market for two years that didn't have one but absolutely deserves its own, you should look at an NBA team as an asset to be cherished and protected because sports (and our sport in particular) is one place where people from all backgrounds and walks of life can come together and celebrate a commonality. When's the last time that happened at a grocery store (shameless plug - please shop at Harris Teeter), or in line at a bank (we love Wachovia!)?

This is turning a little "preachy" for my tastes so I'm going to stop here. Please keep the dialogue going. It's a great use of this forum. And please keep the suggestions coming. You never know when one of them becomes an NBA best practice and gets copied in markets around the league.

[Alex]

Great news about the website! Do you have a timetable for when it might be released?

[Muttley]

It may help to develop some partnership with the Lynx system. I live in Raleigh (would love to see some games at the RBC center!), but I stay with my parents in Waxhaw when I'm in town for games. It's only natural to drive to the 485 park and ride and ride the train all the way up town. I mean, it drops you off right at the door to the arena. It kinda sucks to have to wait in line before and after games in particular to get a ticket for the train. I feel like there's a great opportunity there to offer round-trip tickets to Bobcat ticket holders. Or, perhaps season ticket holders get a season pass on the train. I don't really know, but I'm sure there's a way that you could use the asset of the train to the Bobcat's advantage. At the very least, get some posters on the train.

Thanks again Michael for making yourself so accessible. Can't wait to see the new site.

[dnbman]

Thanks, Michael, for the extended response.

RE: the boycott

Don't ask around too much, as I'm guessing most people have never heard of it. I think the boycott only exists in some marshy area south of where the unicorns and leprechauns live.


On another note, the team should definitely try to connect its various online communities either through the website or some other kind of promotions. I'm not sure what the numbers of are of posters/fans on these sites, but they'll likely only grow.

Perhaps some kind of "best of blogs" on the Bobcats' site would be nice. (Ziggy, would this be a bad thing in anyway?)

[ziggy]

Having a "Best of Blogs" or a "Fan Section" area on their site would be nice, but from the Bobcats perspective I could see why that may be a little reluctant to do that.

They might not want to link to a site where there may be negative content that may counter what they are trying to build.

[ammofan]

Thanks for joining Michael.

I think that first of all the Cats need better advertising. I always see Panthers billboards or beer trucks with the Panthers logo on it or whatever, I NEVER SEE ANYTHING WITH BOBCATS STUFF ON IT!!
Also, the new banners outside of the stadium need to be changed(Herrmann and Primoz are still up)

The Cats could also make a better TV show....the insider is okay but it doestn't tell me anything. Baseball teams (and football teams for that matter) have TV shows during the week that tell trade rumors, and etc., etc. We need something like that.

The Bobcats also need to make a trade. I KNOW that Felton and May and Okafor are players who bring people to the stadium , but maybe we should trade them. Felton and Okafor are underacheiving and May cannot stay healthy. Try to pull in a big time player to play with Gerald and Jason. (Maybe trade for T-Mac- on RealGM.com it states that he is unhappy in Houston)

Oh yeah one last thing- WIN!!!!!

GO CATS GO! GO CATS GO! GO CATS GO!!!!!!!!

[Slam]

Michael, I admire you reaching out to us like this. Very impressive.

In the Dec issue of "SLAM" in the Noyz section on page 44 it says:

"so the bobcasts have the web site they wanted. We would have been happy with them building a function PR dept"

I think that says a lot.

It may seem trivial to you, but saying in the media that we are going to launch a new, revamped web site by the end of Oct and to, in Jan, still have the same old web site really ticks the fans off.

Our merchandise sucks, and any time I have e-mailed the executives I have recieved a cold, uninviting e-maill back.

You want the fans to reach out to you?

Then reach out to the fans.

You could start by checking out the Blazers web site - especially over the summer where they are really "on the ball"

[fatlever]

how can the bobcats improve the fan base?

to begin, this is a good start michael. i think its great that the bobcats have decided to reach out to the fan base like this. in the past, it seems fan forums have largely been ingnored by professional teams. there is no better place to get information about a team you love and connect with the fans than to regularly surf through various internet message boards such as this. this is where you will find your passionate, vocal fans... the younger generation, the pulse of the fan base. obviously this is not where you will find your rich corporate sponsors, but you get the idea.

here are some of the problems that i see... outside of the tv deal which is by far the biggest problem.

1. lack of branding - where are the ads? where are the logos plastered all over the city? where are the tshirts and jerseys in the local malls and sports shops? more more more.

2. lack of connection from the front office - it is no secret that this town does not exactly welcome bob johnson and jordan with open arms. a lot of that has to do with the fanbase feeling like the team is being run by a few absentee owners. johnson and jordan are HUGE icons in their respective fields and they are doing the franchise a huge disservice by remaining so inaccessible to the fans. nobody expects those guys to run around southpark with rufus throwing t-shirts into a crowd or anything but they can certainly make themselves more prominent in the community. how about a weekly radio interview with 610 by jordan or johnson? they need to let the city know they are here for the long haul by their actions and not by statements made through a press release once a year. and where the hell is nellie? does he still own part of the team? its sad that the best national exposure this team has ever had was from flava flav with his huge bobcats clock and bobcats jerseys.

3. the website - its coming soon..... great! cause the current one is terrible. there are headlines on the front page that are a month old. the most recent story in the "newsroom" is about the offer sheet to varejao. cedea has been the dancer of the week for the past 6 weeks. is she that awesome or is the web designer that lazy? there has not been an addition to the wallpaper section of the site in probably 18 months. the site still has a calendar from december of 2006 up. the media guide for last year is still up, no media guide for this season... i could go on and on. bottom line, the site is awful, so i really hope the new site is the answer.

4. bring back natasha the dancer - i think everyone will agree with me here.

5. promote stephanie ready - stephanie is AWESOME! she is by far the best announcer of the bunch. in fact she is one of my favorite announcers in all of basketball. she is light years better than henry williams. unless stephanie just doesnt want to be an announcer and would rather stay as the sideline reporter, then i dont see any reason she shouldnt get the full time job. if not, she will be gone soon.

6. at the arena - i dont mind the volume as much as i mind some of the god awful songs that are played. please please please stop play "everybody dance" that song was terrible 15 years ago and its still terrible now. i swear i feel like having a seizure every time that song is played. overall, i enjoy the entertainment at the arena. I LOVE tic tac tocado, especially when you get a few morons that dont understand the complicated mental olympics required to play the game.... such as last night. the team does a great job of making the cheerleaders, dance team and some players available before games. would it kill you guys to give the vic card to someone in the upper deck more twice a season? do the people sitting 15 rows up at halfcourt really need free groceries? something tells me they are doing ok financially.

7. mcinnis - for the love of god, get MCMINUS out of the starting lineup!

8. 3-point shoot out and dunk contest - if richardson is not invited to the 3pt contest someone in the bobcats marketing department should get slapped. it would also be nice to see hollins in the dunk contest. get on the phones with the league office.

well, thats all i got for now....

anyway, like i said, i think its great that you came by michael. there are some passionate bobcats fans out there.

[ammofan]

very well said fatlever!